Commercial passenger airlines typically arrange seats in rows to efficiently use the available space for passenger accommodation. The intended goal is to maximize the quantity of passengers that that the aircraft can carry per flight for economical use of the vehicle. In general, commercial passenger transport is a competitive business requiring efficient operation.
Frequently, commercial passenger airlines equip their aircraft with in-flight entertainment systems to relieve passenger boredom. In-flight entertainment systems are especially common on aircraft used for longer flight routes. In-flight entertainment systems often include a display device or monitor mounted on passenger seat backs. A passenger sitting in a seat facing the display device can use the display device to reproduce digital information such as video, audio, text, images, and more, depending on the in-flight entertainment system equipped with the aircraft.
In the past, display devices have been used that require partially disassembling a seat to mount the display device thereto. More particularly, the display devices required attachment to mounting points on internal seat structure and attachment to an electrical harness in the seat. Once mounted, the display device is supported by the internal seat structure with the display portion of the device exposed from the seatback for viewing by a passenger. At least one prior art arrangement requires inserting the display device through the front of the back support of a seat to mount the monitor.
The advantage of the foregoing prior arrangements is that the display devices mount very securely to internal seat structure. The seats on passenger aircraft are designed to withstand several gravities in a sudden deceleration event and the display devices are attached to the internal seat supporting structure. If there is a sudden deceleration event, the display devices are securely held and do not usually detach from the seatback in a sudden deceleration event. In addition, it prevents unauthorized tampering as passengers cannot easily detach a display device.
While the foregoing arrangement provides for secure mounting of a display, there are drawbacks. The major drawback is that it is labor intensive and time consuming to mount the display device in this manner. It requires significant time to disassemble each seat, fasten a display device to the internal mounting points and connect an electrical harness to the display device. It can be very time consuming to initially equip an aircraft with such display devices as larger commercial passenger aircraft have hundreds of seats. Further, it is labor intensive and time consuming to repair or replace defective display devices after they have been installed.
As discussed previously, commercial passenger transport is a competitive business requiring efficient operation. There is a desire to reduce the time and costs associated with mounting display devices. In addition, should a display device require repair or replacement, efficient operation requires that the repair or replacement be made as rapidly as possible so that the aircraft can be returned to service as soon as possible.
Furthermore, conventional designs have space inefficiencies. Space is required behind the monitor to permit one or more connectors from an electrical harness to be connected to the monitor. In particular, installation personnel must have sufficient room to reach behind each monitor as it is being installed to ensure secure electrical connections to the monitor.
The present invention addresses the foregoing drawbacks of conventional display device or monitor mounting arrangements by providing a mounting assembly permitting more rapid attachment and detachment of a display device, while securely holding the display device and preventing unauthorized detachment.